ny difference in her."

He had last seen her on the lawn behind the Small House, just at that
time when her passion for Crosbie was at the strongest. Eames had
gone thither impelled by a foolish desire to declare to her his
hopeless love, and she had answered him by telling him that she loved
Mr Crosbie better than all the world besides. Of course she had done
so, at that time; but, nevertheless, her manner of telling him had
seemed to him to be cruel. And he also had been cruel. He had told
her that he hated Crosbie,--calling him "that man," and assuring her
that no earthly consideration should induce him to go into "that
man's house." Then he had walked away moodily wishing him all manner
of evil. Was it not singular that all the evil things which he, in
his mind, had meditated for the man, had fallen upon him. Crosbie
had lost his love! He had so proved himself to be a villain that his
name might not be so much as mentioned! He had been ignominiously
thrashed! But what good would all this be if his image were still
dear to Lily's heart? "I told her that I loved her then," he said to
himself, "though I had no right to do so. At any rate I have a right
to tell her now."

When he reached Allington he did not go in through the village and up
to the front of the Small House by the cross street, but turned by
the church gate and passed over the squire's terrace, and by the end
of the Great House through the garden. Here he encountered Hopkins.
"Why, if that b'aint Mr Eames!" said the gardener. "Mr John, may I
make so bold!" and Hopkins held out a very dirty hand, which Eames of
course took, unconscious of the cause of this new affection.

"I'm just going to call at the Small House, and I thought I'd come
this way."

"To be sure; this way, or that way, or any way, who's so welcome, Mr
John? I envies you; I envies you more than I envies any man. If I
could a got him by the scuff of the neck, I'd a treated him jist like
any wermin;--I would, indeed! He was wermin! I ollays said it. I
hated him ollays! I did indeed, Mr John, from the first moment when
he used to be nigging away at them foutry balls, knocking them in
among the rhododendrons, as though there weren't no flower blossoms
for next year. He never looked at one as though one were a Christian;
did he, Mr John?"

"I wasn't very fond of him myself, Hopkins."

"Of course you weren't very fond of him. Who was? Only she, poor
young lady. She'll be better now, Mr Joh